In general, the present invention relates to an operational MRI system that may be moved easily to different locations. The present invention also relates to promoting the use and sale of an MRI system by showcasing the system and its method of operation, in a mobile set-up. In particular, the present invention is an operational or mock-up MRI system that may be mounted inside of a trailer that may be transported by a truck. The inside of the trailer may be outfitted to facilitate demonstration of the process of performing an MRI scan. Through the demonstration of the operation of the system, sales opportunities may be enhanced.
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is one of the most versatile and fastest growing modalities in medical imaging. Since the discovery by Dr. Raymond Damadian in the early 1970s that nuclear magnetic resonance techniques may be used to scan the human body to yield useful diagnostic information, medical NMR imaging devices have been developed for obtaining NMR images of the internal structures of patients. Subsequently, much effort has been expended to improve and refine the techniques used for obtaining NMR images, as well as to determine the diagnostic utility of NMR images. As a result, NMR imaging, or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), as it is sometimes known, has today proven to be an extremely useful tool in the medical community for the purposes of detecting and diagnosing abnormalities within a patient""s body.
Such MRI systems may be large and expensive. Generally, use of these systems is complicated, and may be uncomfortable for the patient undergoing the procedure. Different models of systems a manufactured by a manufacturer, and models sold by competing manufacturers, vary in many respects. Different models have widely varying technical capabilities from the viewpoint of diagnostic utility, and vary as to the comfort level afforded to the subject patient. Personnel making purchasing decisions for a health care facility, usually hospital administrators, may be typically presented with marketing material in the form of written information describing MRI systems. Given such information, certain comparisons may readily be made to help determine which system should be purchased, but other intangible, important factors simply cannot be evaluated in a meaningful way based on a written description. These intangible factors include ease of use of the system, and patient comfort, among other considerations.
Besides the basic ergonomic considerations for taking these intangible factors into account, they also have a real effect on patient throughput, and, therefore, the hospital""s financial bottom line. For example, the more uncomfortable an image scan is for a patient, the longer that patient will require to rest between scans, slowing the overall procedure. Discomfort for the patient may also lead to patient movement, which may cause a corrupted or incomplete scan that further increases the scan time or even requires a re-scan. Further, if the system is complicated to operate, a longer amount of time may be necessary when conducting a scan for operator setup, loading information into the apparatus with respect to the conditions and sequencing for collection of data, etc. Therefore, the total scanning time may be quite long. It is apparent that one of the major problems with medical NMR imaging is patient throughput. Numerous efforts have been devoted to the development of techniques for obtaining images in a shorter period of time, but the results of these efforts may not be really apparent from a written description of the system, and must be experienced or observed in person to be appreciated.
MRI systems have improved in recent years. Scans are faster in general, and scan times have improved tremendously for particular models. The scan space may also be more open, and therefore more comfortable for the patient undergoing the scan. However, many patients still regard an MRI procedure as a long, claustrophobic experience. Most patients, and many doctors and health care facility administrators may be unaware of the progress made in ensuring that an MRI diagnosis is a more comfortable experience than it was years ago. As a result, patients who could benefit from an MRI diagnosis may opt not to have one, leading to possible mis-diagnosis of injury, undue pain and discomfort, and wasted money on the part of the patient and insurance companies. Such waste of money is a major area of concern for health care providers, insurance companies, as well as local and national legislators.
Further, doctors who may be unaware of the advances made in MRI technology may not prescribe an MRI scan to a patient who could benefit from such a procedure. For example, the doctor may incorrectly believe that the discomfort associated with the scan would be greater than that of the injury itself, which will then go untreated or otherwise mistreated due to the doctor""s mistaken impression. Further, the doctor may have the erroneous impression that MRI scans do not provide images having a fine enough resolution to diagnose a particular problem and may seek other, less accurate and more expensive means of diagnosing a patient""s problem.
Therefore, there is a great need on the part of hospital administrators to learn about advances in MRI technology, and to learn about the latest models of systems and what may be offered so that they may be able to make a more informed decision when ordering an MRI system for the hospital.
There is also a great need for doctors and patients to learn about advances in MRI technology. This would help doctors to more effectively utilize the technology at their disposal to better and more economically treat their patients. This would also help patients realize and understand the options that may be available to them in seeking treatment, both as to the capability of MRI scanning and as to which models of MRI scanning systems may be better so that the appropriate facility may be chosen. In extreme cases, a demonstration would enable some patients to overcome the fear associated with undergoing MRI diagnosis.
Further, there is a need for MRI system manufacturers and marketers to educate hospital administrators in advances in MRI technology, as well, by demonstrating the capabilities of particular models of MRI systems, in order to increase sales of MRI machines. It is also in the interest of MRI system manufacturers and marketers to educate doctors in advances in MRI technology and in demonstrating the capabilities of particular models of MRI systems, in order to encourage the recommendations of doctors to hospital administrators to purchase their model of MRI system. It is also in the interest of MRI system manufacturers and marketers to educate patients in advances in MRI technology and in demonstrating the capabilities of particular models of MRI systems in order to alleviate their fears and concerns regarding undergoing an MRI diagnostic procedure, thereby encouraging future use and potentially sales of MRI systems.
However, because MRI machines are typically large and expensive, it is not practical, conventionally, to demonstrate the use of a particular model when attempting to make a sale to a hospital or other health care facility.
It is therefore an objective of the present invention to provide an MRI system that is easily demonstrated to hospital administrators, doctors, and patients, and to health care facility personnel in general.
It is a further objective of the present invention to provide an MRI system that may be demonstrated to hospital administrators, doctors, and patients at their convenience.
It is also an objective of the present invention to provide an MRI system for demonstration that is operable, so that potential purchasers and users of the system may more realistically assess the system""s capabilities.
It is an additional objective of the present invention to provide a mock-up MRI system that realistically demonstrates an MRI diagnostic procedure, but at a much lower cost than an actual operational MRI system.
It is another objective of the present invention to provide an MRI system demonstration set-up that may be used as a marketing tool for the sale of such MRI systems.
The apparatus of the present invention may be a trailer or other mobile carrier that includes an MRI system set-up. The set-up includes an MRI scanner that may be operational or may be a mock-up system design to simulate the operation of an actual MRI scanner. The system also includes monitoring equipment for presenting real or simulated MRI imaging information. Other equipment, either real or designed for demonstration purposes only, that is necessary to or that facilitates an MRI diagnostic procedure may also be included. Preferably, the equipment may be sheltered inside of the trailer, and may be set up such that observers may easily view the scanner and other equipment from all advantageous angles. Further, the equipment may be arranged so that an observer may put himself in the place of a patient undergoing an MRI diagnostic procedure, so that a first-hand evaluation of the equipment may be made.
This setup may be used to demonstrate operation of the system. The terms xe2x80x9cdemonstratexe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cpresentationxe2x80x9d, as used herein in any form, refer to the operation of either a mock-up system or an actual operational system, for the benefit of observers. These observers include the previously-mentioned patients and health care facility personnel. While one purpose of such demonstration may be to promote education in the field of MRI, another aspect of the invention may be to use such demonstration for marketing purposes.